SONG PREMIERE: Lebanese Black Metal/Punk Band Ayat

You’ll want to spend some time with this one and get nice and filthy

Ayat’s second full length has been a long time coming. The Lebanese group turned heads with ‘Six Years of Dormant Hatred’ back in 2008, a violent and over the top combination of black metal and punk with an industrial backbone. Their follow-up effort ‘Carry On, Carrion!’ was announced by Moribund Records way back in 2010, resurfacing a few times over the past few years. Like many, I wondered if the album would end up seeing the light of day or if this was the last we had heard from the band. On November 24th ‘Carry On, Carrion!’ will finally see release and today we’re premiering the opening track of the album, Raw War (Beirut unveils her pussy once more).

The title of this song should give you a pretty good idea of the overall tone that this album is going for, and Ayat has the in your face instrumental work to back up the crass and unapologetic lyrics. While you’ll likely see them labeled as purely black metal, ‘Carry On, Carrion!’ pulls in a lot of additional elements that result in a sound different from what you might initially expect. Raw War is a great example of this, as the tonality falls somewhere between punk influenced black metal and industrial not that far removed from Ministry. Plus there’s plenty of sleazy rock ‘n roll to be found in the guitar work, and you can almost feel the grit and grime dripping off every note. The drums drive everything forward with a frantic pace that barrages the listener and makes the material all the more abrasive. Later on ‘Carry On, Carrion!’ switches things up quite a bit, heading into slightly more traditional black metal territory and slower sections that channel a more desolate and barren tone. But it’s clear that with Raw WarAyat wanted to start things off with speed and aggression and they absolutely nail it.

Ayat’s vocalist goes by Reverend Filthy Fuck, and that couldn’t be a better description for the type of vocals he vomits forth throughout the course of this song. Initially his pitch is a high shriek mixed with slightly lower growls that sound as pissed off and in your face as you can possibly get. But the further into this track you get the more twisted and varied the vocals become. Around three quarters of the way in lower clean singing works its way into the mix with distorted growls supporting it, which feels just a bit unhinged and maniacal. It’s a combination that may prove off-putting to some, but the unpredictability and psychotic nature had just the opposite effect on me and drew me back for repeat listens.

Moribund’s press release for ‘Carry On, Carrion!’ claims this is the final Ayat release, and if that is indeed true they’ve gone out on a strong note. With songs that have the violence and scorched earth of black metal mixed in with the type of sleazy punk/rock ‘n roll that will have you needing a shower afterwards, you’ll want to spend some time with this one and get nice and filthy. ‘Carry On, Carrion!’ releases November 24th, full track-listing is below.

Raw War (Beirut unveils her pussy once more) (5:58)

Every time a child says ‘I don’t believe in Allah’ there is a little Allah somewhere that falls down dead (6:59)

I think I killed her (4:54)

Aisha (6:22)

Fever In Tangiers, or To William (7:56)

Closure is boring (4:40)

The pig who had miraculously been spared decomposition (5:41)

Jerusalem I (7:58)

Jerusalem II (8:15)

The fine art of arrogance. Part II (The apocalypse is but an ejaculation) (4:03)